Off and running: Ground game produces big results as Hawks win home opener

QUINCY — It’s a common theory that can lead to uncommon results.

And there was nothing common about what transpired Saturday at QU Stadium.

Backed by a ground game that churned out 248 yards rushing, the Quincy University piled up 515 yards of total offense in a 46-5 dismantling of Lincoln in the Great Lakes Valley Conference opener and the first official game of the Jason Killday coaching era.

“That’s our first key to victory,” senior left tackle Nathan Smith said. “Win the rush stat every week.”

Or in this case, dominate it. The Hawks outgained the Blue Tigers 248-52 on the ground and led 25-2 before two blistering runs put the game away. Teon Dollard scored on a 67-yard run midway through the third quarter before Kareem Carswell ripped off a 57-yard touchdown run on the first play of the Hawks’ next possession.

“With our running back room, it’s always about holding each other accountable,” Dollard said. “Letting each other know alignment, assignment, your base, in and out of your cuts, hold the ball. We keep talking to each other about that. We hold each other accountable to carry that out onto the field to get the job done.”

The 1-2 punch of Dollard and Carswell put Lincoln down for the count.

Dollard finished with 134 yards on 16 carries with three touchdowns, while Carswell had 112 yards on 14 carries and one score. They each averaged better than 8 yards per carry as the Hawks averaged 6.7 yards per carry collectively.

“They were running backs today,” Killday said. “They weren’t just running with the football. They were running backs today. They made some things right when they weren’t there, and they didn’t make things worse. That’s key to it, too.”

More importantly, they ran where the holes were made.

“It was the competitive drive of our offensive line and how we played,” Smith said. “We just got after them and that’s when 2-yard runs turn into 4-yard runs and 4-yard runs turn into 6-yard runs. That was kind of the story for today.”

A safety on the first play of Lincoln’s first drive gave the Hawks a 2-0 lead, and the offense started finding its rhythm after that.

A seven-play, 62-yard drive resulted in a 21-yard field goal by Michael Owens, and Dollard capped a pair of second-quarter drives with touchdown runs of 3 and 4 yards. Having saved their timeouts, the Hawks were able to force the Blue Tigers to punt with 1:14 remaining in the half after a three-play lasted only 21 seconds.

Quincy capitalized after Anthony Gilpin Jr. returned the punt 46 yards to the Lincoln 29-yard line. It took four plays for Hawks quarterback Drake Davis to find Gilpin for a 6-yard touchdown pass and a 25-0 lead going into halftime.

Davis completed 20 of 24 passes for 267 yards and two touchdowns.

“We did a good job of holding onto the football and we didn’t make many mistakes,” Killday said. “We were able to put ourselves in good positions to attack because of that.”

It certainly helped having a defense that kept the Blue Tigers on their heels. They managed just 113 yards of total offense and nine first downs and didn’t score offensively until kicking a 42-yard field goal with 28 seconds remaining in regulation.

It eliminated the opportunity for the defense to say it pitched a shutout — Lincoln scored on a safety in the third quarter — but the Hawks won’t let that diminish the effort.

“You always want to keep the goose egg up there,” defensive lineman Jaylin Vaughn said. “But you take the effort with you into the next game.”

That will be in two weeks when the Hawks travel to Missouri S&T. QU will use next week’s bye week to continue to tweak and adjust things on both sides of the ball, but the blueprint for success has been established.

Win the run game, win the battle.

“We intend to do that every week,” Smith said.